Relay



Nov. 2, 1937. 3` s. FIELD 2,097,786

RELAY Filed March 19. 1935 45 5 'E' :WIS 7.5' 5152 5 7.5

8 FIG. Z. 11u' 28 .31 5 46 l 24 m 4@ I INVENTOR 5 52 1 Q 5 zf,

ATTORNEY Patented Nov. 2, 1937 UNlTED STATES RELAY Oscar S. Field, Rochester, N. Y., assignor to General Railway Signal Company, Rochester, N. Y.

Application March 19, 1935, Serial No. 11,838

13 Claims. (Cl. 172-126) 'Ihis invention relates to relays and more particularly to relays of the oscillating armature type particularly adapted to flash signal lights at highway crossings upon the approach of a railway train.

It is proposed in accordance with the present invention to provide a relay having a center pvoted armature operable to either of two positions according to the energization of either of two electro-magnets wherein an oscillation controlling means actuated by the center pivoted armature is arranged to select the energization of the electro-magnets in a manner to provide kimproved oscillatory operation of the armature.

` More specifically, it is proposed to provide a control contact arrangement operated by the armature to shift the energization of the relay from one operating magnet to the other, which control contact arrangement provides reliable and positive starting of the armature oscillation and a uniform and constant rate of oscillation. Other objects include the provision of an oscillating relay having a control contact arranged to reduce to a minimum the arcing in making and breaking electrical circuits and to Obtain maximum efficiency of operation by an arrangement offering a minimum amount of friction and requiring a minimum number of ampere turns to start and operate the armature.

Still other objects, purposes and characteristic features of the present invention will appear as the ldescription thereof progresses, during which references will be made to the accompanying drawing, in whichz- Fig. l is a front elevational view of a relay structure embodying the present invention wherein certain parts have been shown diagraml matically and other parts have been sectioned or broken away to more clearly yshow the construction thereof.

Fig. 2 is a side elevational sectional view of the relay structure shown in Fig. 1 and also having certain parts broken away and other parts removed.

Referring to the accompanying drawing, the

arrangement illustrated as embodying the present invention is constructed to conform with the requirements of railway signalling practice, and the portion of the relay construction which em- -bodies the major portion of the present invention is shown in greater detail than certain other parts which may for example be arranged in the manner illustrated in Patent No. 1,969,065 granted on August 7, 1934 to O. S. Field. The

various parts of the relay illustrated herein are carried by a top plate 3 of insulating material such as bakelite or the like, the electro-magnetic structure being arranged above the plate 3 while the armature and various contacts operated thereby are carried below and enclosed by a glass 5 case (not shown) in accordance with the usual construction.

The electro-magnetic construction comprises two outer cores 4 and 5 carrying windings E and I respectively and a center core E, the cores 4, l0 5 and 8 being all magnetically joined at their upper ends by a strap 9 clamped through by bolts I0. The cores 4, 5 rand 8 extend through the top plate 3 and terminate in enlarged pole pieces I4,

I5 and I8 respectively, the magnetic structure 15 including these cores being supported on the top plate 3 by screws not shown herein passing through the plate 3 into the pole pieces I4, I5 and I8. v

An armature 20 Vis arranged beneath the en- 20 larged pole pieces so that, when in its position illustrated in Fig. 1, the pole pieces I4 and I8 are magnetically joined thereby and is operable about a center pivoting means to magnetically bridge pole pieces l5 and I8. The arma- 25 ture 20 is attached to a cradle member 22 by screws'23 as shown in Fig. 2, and a semi-resilient strip24 is provided to separate the armature 2i! from the cradle member 22 as shown.

The cradle member 22 is provided with up- 30 Wardly extending lugs 25 and 25, the lug 26 carrying a trunnion pin 28 adjustably clamped therein by screw 29 as shown in Fig. l, and the lug 25 carries a vtrunnion pin 2T also clamped therein in the same manner. An inwardly extending re- 35 duced end of the trunnion pin 28 rotatably fits within a bearing in the end of an elongated spacing screw 30 threaded into the pole pieces I8, and in a similar manner, the reduced end of trunnion pin k2'I is rotatably held by a shorter spacing screw 40 3l also threaded into the pole piece I8. In this manner it will'be obvious that the cradle member 22 is pivotally supported from the center core I8 in a manner to permit the armature 20 to freely operate into engagement with either pole 45 piece I4 or I5.

The contact arrangement for controlling external circuits in accordance with the operation of armature 20 has herein been shown in as simple a manner as possible, it being understood that an arrangement similar to that shown in Patent No. 1,969,065 may be employed. The illustrated arrangement however comprises movable contact fingers 33 and 34 clamped, together with their respective rie-enforcing spring arrangement 39, 55-

to an insulating block by through bolts 36 as shown in Fig. 2. The insulating block 35 is fixed to a downwardly extending arm 31 integral with the cradle member 22 by through bolts 38, and it is clear that the number of contacts operated by the armature 20 may be increased to satisfy the demands of the particular application by other insulating contact carrying blocks similar to 35 mounted for example on the opposite side of the arm 31. Y

The contact ngers 33 and 34 are engageable with respective fixed back contacts 40, which contacts 48 are adjustably carried by arms 4l. The arms 4| are broken away in Fig. 1, but it is understood that they are held by terminal posts to the top plate 3 in the usual manner. Fixed front contacts coacting with the movable iingers 33 and 34 may of course be provided also if required, and it is understood that the ngers 33 and 34 are to be connected by exible leads to terminal postson plate 3 in accordance with the usual practice.V

The control contact arrangement operable to effect oscillation of the armature 20 during energization of the present relay is provided in accordance with the present invention by a U- shaped bracket 45, the upper ends of the bracket being carried rotatably on screws 45 threaded into the cradle member 22 at points directly beneath the location of the trunnion pins 21 and 28. A hollow arm 41 integral with the member 22 extends downwardly therefrom and houses a compression spring 48 acting upon a cylindrical plunger 45.

an upper knife-edge of a toggle link 50, and a and Ei, whereby it is obvious that the flexible lower knife-edge of this toggle link 50 enters a V-shaped upper end of a bearing member 5|, which bearing member 5| is clamped to the bra oket 45 by screws 52 passing therethrough and threaded into la retaining member 53.

A. triangular shaped member 55 is rivetedto the back upright portion of the bracket 45 as shown in Fig. 2 and carries a contact holding strip 56 having its ends bent forwardly around the edges of member 55 to hold low resistance contacts 51 at each end thereof. The contacts 51 are engageable with respective low resistance contact surfacesi carried by the lower ends of vertical contact lingers @B and 6|. The contact fingers E5 and El are riveted to downwardly extending rigid arms 62 and 53 which are in turn attached to the top plate 3 by bolts 64. The lower ends of the arms 52 and 63 carry screws 65 threaded therethrough to engage the associated :lingers 6! Contact fingers 60 and 5! may be adjustably positioned relative to their cooperating contacts 51, and the adjusted position of screws 35 may be retained by locking nuts 6B;

The contact vngersfl) and 5| are adjusted to positions eiective to hold the degree of travel of bracket 45 within certain limits,.which degree of travel is necessarily less than that of its actuatarm 5. For example, the linger 6| Yin Fig. 1 is so adjusted that the arrested position of the bracket e5 positions the toggle link 5U at a certain oblique angle, which angle is such Vthat the pressure between contacts 5'! and 58 Vproidded by the horizontal component of the force.

transmitted from spring 48 through link 50 effects a low resistance electrical connection.

describing the operation of the present relay, it wil be considered that (-l-) potential of energy is applied to wire i0 in Fig. V1 and or op- The plunger 49 is V-shaped at itsV f lower end as shown in Fig. 1 whereby to receive 9 back to the upper end of core 5.

This flux obviously attracts the right hand end of armature 28 toward pole piece l5 so as to rock the armature 28 about its center pivot pins 2? and 28 in a counter-clockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 1 The downwardly extending arm 4l of the cradle member 22 is then moved to the right by this movement of armature 2Q, whereby it is obvious that the toggle link 58 is rst operated toward a vertical position which increases the distance between plunger 49 and bracket 45, or in other words, the plunger 49 is moved upwardly toV compress spring 48 until the link 58 reaches a vertical position. When the link 58 moves beyond its Vertical position, it is obvious that the horizontal component of the force transmitted therethrough from spring 48 to bracket 45 is reversedl inits direction, thereby snapping the lower end of bracket 45 to the left to a position wherein contact El' engages Contact finger 68.

The contact nger 68 is adjusted to stop the bracket 45 in a position wherein the link 58 is at an oblique angle but slanting in a direction opposite from that illustrated. It is clear then that the contact fingers 60 and 6| should be so adjusted that the angle of vertical displacement of link 55 is equal at the two extreme positions of armature 28, and it is of course necessary to maintain the total travel of bracket 45 less than the total travel of arm 4l.

The disengagement of contact 57 from contact finger El obviously removes the shunt from coil 5,`

' contact 5l closed on Contact finger 58, wire '14,

to on wire H. It will then be clear that when armature 28 has operated into engagement with pole piece l5, coil l is shunted thereby allowing coil 5 to produce ux flowing from the upper rend of core 5, through strap .9, downwardly through core 8, through the left hand end of armature 2i? and back to the lower end of core 4, thereby attracting'the left hand end of armature 29 toward pole piece I4 and operating the armature in a clockwise direction back to its illustrated position.

YIt will of course-be clear that during the rst part of the travel of armature 25 toward pole piece I4, the lower end of arm 4'1 moves to the left and operates link 50 toward a vertical position thereby again comprising spring 48. When the link 5i) has passed beyond its vertical position, the horizontal component of the force transmitted therethrough from spring 48 to bracket 35 is again reversed in its direction, thereby snapping the bracket 45 Vto Vthe left to'engage Contact 5l with contact linger 6G as illustrated. The contact fingers 33 and 34 are of course operated directly by the armaturer!! to engage and disengage their associated fixed contacts 4i! to therebyY make and break various external electrical circuits.

20 is operated rst into one position and then into the other due to the selective shunting of the operating coils 6 and l by the control contact arrangement operated by the armature, and it may be seen from the foregoing description of the ux paths involved in operating the armature 8v from one position to the other that the coils 6 and 1 are so arranged that flux iiows iirst in one direction and then in the other through the center core 8. Consequently in order to hold the rate of operation of armature 20 within certain desired limits, a plurality of short-circuited washers 'H of non-magnetic material are placed around core 8, which act in the usual manner to retard any change in flux flowing in core B. It will be obvious that the washers 11 will be effective to retard the rate of operation of armature 2D by delaying the reversal of the direction of ux in core 8, and of course the rate of operation of armature 20 may be conveniently decreased by adding more washers or may be increased by removing one or more of washers 11 from core 8.

A relay of the oscillating-armature type has thus been provided, wherein a center pivoted armature is operable in one direction in response to the flow of current in one electro-magnet and is operable in the other direction in response to the flow of current in another electro-magnet, and wherein an armature-operated contact is arranged to shift the flow of current from one magnet to another in a manner to effect oscillation of the armature.

An important feature of the present invention is the provision oi an oscillation-controlling contact which retains one set of contacts closed until the armature has nearly completed the associated direction of movement and shifts its position to close a different set of contacts preparatory for the opposite direction of armature movement only after the armature has completed nearly all of its travel, thereby providing a positive and uniform rate of operation and a more eilicient relay structure. Specifically, it may be seen from the particular form illustrated that this feature is provided by an arrangement whereby the contact 51 is not moved in response to the rst part of movement of armature 20, but rather the contact 5l' is moved only after the toggle link 5@ has operated beyond its vertical position, and the position of bracket 45 allows the link 50 to assume a vertical position only when the armature has nearly completed its travel.

Another important feature of the present invention is the arrangement of an oscillation controlling contact which remains in its last operated position upon de-energization of the relay, and when in such last operated position exerts suilicient pressure upon the xed Contact engaged thereby to permit positive and reliable starting upon subsequent energization of the relay. It will also be obvious that an arrangement has been provided wherein a pressure which provides a iow resistance connection between the movable and stationary oscillation controlling contacts is maintained as the armature moves through the greater part of its travel or until the movable contact is operated, and the snap operation of this movable contact of course acts in the usual manner to reduce arcing in breaking Ythe electrical circuit therethrough. Attention is also directed to the arrangement of knife-edge bearings in the toggle arrangement whereby wear and friction are reduced to a minimum to provide a more substantial and eflicient device.

The above rather specific description of one form of the present invention is given solely by Way of example, and is not intended in any manner whatsoever in a limiting sense. It is further to be understood that various modifications, adaptations and alterations may be applied to the Vspeciiic form shown without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention, except as limited by the appended claims.

What I claim is:-

1. In a relay of the oscillating armature type, a pivoted armature, two electro-magnets one on each side of the pivotal axis of the armature whereby the armature is swung in one direction or the other according to the selective energization of the electro-magnets, a contact-operating arm for effecting alternate energization of the electro-magnets, an actuating arm on the armature, a rigid biased toggle link operatively connecting the contact-operating arm and the actuating arm, said toggle link being arranged to snap operate the contact-operating arm only during the latter quarter portion of the travel of the actuating arm and in an opposite direction to said travel.

2. In a relay of the oscillating armature type, a pivoted armature, two electro-magnets one on each side of the pivotal axis of the armature whereby the armature is swung in one direction or the other according to the selective energization of the electro-magnets, an actuating arm on the armature, a contact-operating arm for effecting alternate energization of the electromagnets, and pivoted to the actuating arm on the armature, a toggle link connecting the contact-operating arm and the actuating arm, and biasingmeans acting on the toggle link in a mannerto snap-operate the contact-operating arm in a direction opposite to the direction of movement of the actuating arm during a movement of the toggle link through a center-position.

3. In a relay of the oscillating armature type, a center pivoted armature, two electro-magnets for operating the armature to oppositely disposed positions, a movable contact coacting with two xed contacts to selectively energize either of the electro-magnets, an actuating arm extending from the armature, a rigid toggle member extending from the actuating arm to the movable contact member, and a biasing means compressing the toggle member and operating the toggle member into one oblique position at one position of the armature whereby to engage the movable contact with one fixed contact and operating the toggle member into an opposite oblique position at the other position of the armature whereby to engage the movable contact with the other fixed contact.

4. In a relay of the oscillating-armature type, a center pivoted armature, two electro-magnets for operating the armature to oppositely disposed positions, a pivoted movable contact carried by the armature and coacting with two fixed contacts to selectively energize either of the electro-magnets, an actuating arm extending toward the movable contact from the armature, a rigid knife-edge toggle member extending from the actuating arm to the movable contact, and a biasing means in the actuating arm operating the toggle member into one oblique position at one position of the armature whereby to engage the movable contact with one fixed contact and operating the toggle member into an opposite oblique position at the other position of the armature whereby to engage the movable contact with the other fixed contact.

vr5. In a relay, a center-pivoted armature, two electro-magnets one on each side of the pivotal axis of the armature whereby the armature is operated in either direction according to the selective energization of the electro-magnets, a downwar ly extending arm operated directly by the armature, a bracket pivotably mounte-d on the arm and extending around the lower end of the arm, two xed contacts limiting the travel of the bracket, a toggle link extending between the lower end of the actuating arm and the lower end of the bracket, and biasing means acting on the toggle link to snap-operate the bracket between the two fixed contacts in a direction opposite to the movement of the actuating arm.

6. In a relay, a contact arm operable to -denite positions either side of a center line, an actuating arm operable to definite positions either side of the same center line and operable a greater degree than the contact arm, toggle means connecting the contact arm with the actuating arm, and a compression biasing means in the actuating arm acting on the contact arm through the toggle means, whereby the contact arm is operated by a movement of the actuating arm beyond a position wherein the actuating arm aligns with the-contact arm.

'7. In a relay, an armature, coils for operating the armature, a pivoted contact arm operable to two extreme positions for controlling the coils, an actuating arm operable by the armature to two extreme positions, a rigid toggle link ccn-V nection between the two arms, means in compression biasing the toggle link and urging the two arms apart, the connection being arranged so that the biased toggle connection causes operation of the contact arm only during the last portion of the travel of the actuating arm.

8. In a relay, in combination, a pivoted armature movable `to two extreme positions, an actuating arm on the armature, an actuated arm, a rigid link Ypivotally connecting the two arms, and a compression biasing means maintaining the link under compression.

9. In a relay, in combination, operating coils for operating an armature, a pivoted armature movable by the coils to two extreme positions, an actuating arm on the armature, an actuated arm pivoted to the actuating arm, a rigid link pivotally connecting the two arms, and a compression biasing means maintaining the link under compression.

10. In a relay, in combination, a pivoted armature, electro-magnets for operating the armature to two extreme positions, an actuating arm on the armature, an actuated arm pivoted to the actuating arm, energizing circuits for the electromagnets controlled by the actuated arm, a rigid link pivotally connecting the two arms, and a compression biasing means maintaining the link under compression whereby the electro-magnet energizing circuits are controlled only at the end of movement of the armature.

11. In a relay, in combination, a pivoted armature, electro-magnets for operating the armature to two extreme positions, an actuating arm on the armature, an actuated arm pivoted to the actuating arm, energizing circuits for the electromagnets controlled by the actuated arm, a rigid link pivotally connecting the two arms, and a compression biasing means maintaining the link under compression whereby the electro-magnet energizing circuits are controlled only at the end of movement of the armature.

l2. In a relay of the oscillating-armature type, a center pivoted armature, two electro-magnets for operating the armature to oppositely disposed positions, a pivoted movable contact coacting with two xed contacts to selectively energize either of the electro-magnets, an actuating arm extending toward the movable contact from the armature, a toggle member extending from the actuating arm to the movable contact, and a biasing means operating the toggle member into one oblique position at one position of the armature whereby to engage the movable contact with one xed contact and operating the toggle member into an 'opposite oblique position at the other position of the armature whereby to engage the movable Vcontact with the other fixed contact.

13.Y In Va relay, in combination, an oscillating armature, a pivoted movable contact carried by the armature, an actuating arm extending from the armature toward the movable contact, a'rigid toggle member extending from the actuating arm to the movable contact, and a biasing means in the actuating arm operating the toggle member into one oblique position of the armature, and into an opposite oblique position at the other position of the armature.

OSCAR S. FIELD. 

